In an order dated September 10, 2018, Boyce Hydro had its operating license for the Edenville Dam revoked.

The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) cited "longstanding failure to increase the project’s spillway capacity to safely pass flood flows" among other compliance issues in the license revokal.

Over a 14-year-period – since Boyce acquired the license in 2004 – there were a number of "non-compliance issues," the FERC said.

FERC added: "...Boyce Hydro has failed to comply with numerous requirements of its license related to dam safety, recreation, and other resources."

One of the major issued cited in the license revokal was an "inability to pass the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF)4 due to inadequate spillway capacity."

The PMF is defined in the order as a flood that could "be expected from the most severe combination" of severe weather and water conditions "that is reasonably possible."

In the order, the FERC cited a series of missed deadlines, with Boyce "failing to make any significant progress" in improvements of the dam to meet the PMF.

According to the license revokal document, Boyce failed to have an initial auxiliary spillway built by November 14, 2015.

The spillway was supposed to be built on the Tobacco River side of the dam.

A little more than a year later, a second spillway was supposed be built on the Tittabawassee River side, according to the documents.

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An aerial view of the burst Edenville Dam on TuesdayCredit: Reuters

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People look at the damage of the Edenville Dam on Wednesday after it rupturedCredit: EPA

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Damage after the Edenville Dam collapsed due to the heavy rainCredit: EPA

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A road and bridge near Edenville are pictured damaged after the dam collapsedCredit: EPA

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Water is seen rushing as the Sanford Dam overflowsCredit: Reuters

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Damage to a road and bridge after the collapse of Edenville Dam on TuesdayCredit: EPA

"Boyce Hydro failed to meet these new deadlines, as well as other deadlines, and has yet to file complete and adequate plans for either auxiliary spillway despite receiving numerous extensions of time to complete certain design phase analyses and to file documents," the letter from FERC said.

The company also failed to meet with a compliance order in 2017 that laid out specific requirements for the dam to operate, the revokal order stated.

FERC alleged that "Boyce Hydro knowingly violated its license," and stated that it was thereby revoked.

"Unfortunately Boyce Hydro is unable to provide extensive comment or information at this time regarding a very complex subject matter," Lee Mueller, who is listed as the Owner, Architect & Co-Member Manager of Boyce, said in an email to The Sun.

"We are currently focused on the operational and recovery requirements of our three licensed hydro projects," he added.

In a statement forwarded to The Sun, Boyce Hydro said it is "deeply distressed by the tragic results of the
unprecedented storm that hit the area this week and resulted in the breach of the Edenville and Sanford dams."

"We sympathize with those who have lost property and been forced to relocate due to the resulting flooding in
Gladwin and Midland Counties.

Boyce said the company operators began to lower water levels in four dams – including the Edenville and Sanford Dams – on Friday in anticipation of the storm.

"Despite their round-the-clock efforts, the massive volume of rainfall in the drainage basins of the Tobacco
and Tittabawassee rivers, over an extended period of time, resulted in increasing water levels in the Wixom
reservoir, to two feet below the dam crest," Boyce said in a statement.

This increased rainfall, combined with waves caused by high winds, eventually led to "approximately 900 feet" the Edenville dam being washed out, and more water being sent toward the Sandford Dam, Boyce said.

After Boyce's license was revoked, The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) assumed authority of Edenville Dam, MLive reported.

Last December, The Four Lakes Task Force agreed to buy dams on Wixom, Sanford, Secord and Smallwood lakes from Boyce, WJRT reported.

The deal was expected to close in the next few months, spokeswoman Stacey Trapani told The Associated Press.

With the purchase, The Four Lakes Task Force had planned to raise $32 million to help with upgrades and maintenance – but as the Edenville Dam ruptured, the status of the deal is unclear, Trapani added.

The Edenville Dam was rated in unsatisfactory condition two years ago, while the Sanford Dam received a fair rating, the Associated Press reported.

In a letter from David Capka, director of the Division of Dam Safety and Inspections for FERC on Wednesday, Boyce was ordered to form a team to investigate why the floodwaters overflowed the Sanford Dam, MLive reported.

The collapse of the Edenville Dam around 5:45 p.m. prompted a state of emergency to be declared with some towns expected to be hit by nine-foot of water.

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Water flows from a dam on Tuesday amid evacuation ordersCredit: AP:Associated Press

Residents that evacuated amid flooding fears due to the dam collapse are seen at a shelterCredit: Reuters

After the Edenville Dam broke, more water was released into Sanford lake, Midland Daily News Reported.

This caused more waters to rush through the Sanford Dam, Dave Kook, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service said.

Fears were sparked as the Sandford Dam also reportedly burst on Wednesday.

Several shelters in the area have opened, where people can go to seek safety.

Officials are trying to take precautions to prevent the spread of coronavirus, as people gather in the shelters that have been set up as people evacuate their homes.

Teams are trying to screen individuals being sheltered and emergency response personnel have plenty of personal protective equipment and are wearing masks, said Mark Bone, Chairman of the Midland County Board of Commissioners.

Gov Whitmer said: "To go through this in the midst of a global pandemic is almost unthinkable. But we are here, and to the best of our ability we are going to navigate this together.

"So please, to the best of your ability, continue to wear a face covering when you go to a shelter or go stay with a friend or relative."